Lost in the Jungle
by Mary Allen
Summary: After an explosion, Robin, Kid Flash and Artemis are left injured for their own in the jungle, with no way to contact the rest of The Team, strugling to stay alive.
1. Chapter 1

**AN: So, this is my first story ever, I kind of suck at it, but I will try my best at improving myself. I warn you at the beginning, I won´t update regularly, I have lot of other stuff to do.**

**Also, English is not my native language, so if you find grammar mistakes, please report them, so I can repair it. I also didn´t quite figure out all the tenses that the English language has.**

**Disclaimer: fortunately, I don´t own Young Justice (but I guess you fugured that out). If I would, it most probably wouldn´t be that awesome, and it definitelly wouldn´t be a show for kids.**

_Secret Cadmus base in South Africa_

The mission was a success. Yesterday, Batman discovered another hidden Cadmus base, this one in South Team just sneaked inside, cuffed the scientists that were working there, retrived the hostages and downloaded all files and sent it to Batman for further investigation.

Right now, the 5 scientists were standing before the bioship, with Aqualad guarding them. Miss Martian and Superboy were inside the bioship, calming the hostages and preparing it for the long flight to Mount Justice. Or maybe they were just doing something else.

Robin, Kid Flash and Artemis were standing in silence on the other side of the base.

"There is something bothering me about this mission," Robin finally said. "I mean, it´s Cadmus, right? Always super hightech, with all those security systems, alarms and armed guards? Why does it feel to me that this was almost too easy?"

"Dude, chill out" Kid Flash started, in his typical manner. "All the missions doesn´t have to be hard. Anyway, this is South Africa, why would Cadmus have an important facility here?" He touched a light bruise on his forehead. "Hey, lets get something to eat, I´m starving like hell! I don´t even have enough energy to heal this little wound".

"How did you even get that? We didn´t have a fight," Robin asked, with amused look on his face.

"Um, you know, I´m always ahead of you, and one of the scientists took me by surprise with a dining tray. Would you believe that?" Wally quickly mumbled, his eyes looking anywhere else than to Robin´s domino mask.

Artemis, who stood silent all the time and was watching the jungle far away under their feet through the giant window, suddenly turned to them. "No they didn´t! I saw you ran to a glass counter! Idiot." Although her voice sounded like always, as if she was mocking Wally, but Robin could see little sparks of amusement deep in her eyes.

"Yeah, whatever," replied the redhead, suddenly preoccupied with watching M´gann and Conner walking out of the bioship, holding their hands.

All of sudden, the speedster could see as one of the scientists got his hands out of the handcuffs and pressed a switch he´d been hiding all the time and wall of flames busted out in the middle of the room, effectively cutting the three heroes out of the bioship and the rest of their team.

_Other side of the room_

Superboy watched in horror as the flames spread from the sides of the room to the middle, hiding his three teammates from his sight.

M´gann slightly staggered, as the Martians were vulnerable to fire. Superboy quickly strengthened his grip on her, but she just said, with eyes full of fear: "I´m fine, the fire is not close enough to hurt me, but I think it´s blocking my telepathy. Leave me here, go help Kaldur." The clone nodded shortly before storming of to the wall of fire.

Kaldur was standing there with helpless look on his face. His hand was pressed to his ear. He welcomed the cloned with troubled look.

"The comm links are jammed. And I can´t see through that fire. But maybe you could get through."

He stepped aside, his fishy green eyes watching the Kryptonians furious face.

Conner was almost in the flames, when he felt his hand being burned. He yanked with his hand away, confusedly looking at it. He felt sharp, but not agonizing pain and smelled charred fabric of his T-shirt.

"I–I don´t understand," his confused eyes looked at his hand and then at the Atlantean. "This never happened."

"Of course you can´t pass through that fire," answered the one scientist that pressed the button switch with an evil frown on his face. "We modified the fire so its wavelength matches the red sun rays. You don´t have any powers right now."

His typical, furious expression settled itself on Superboy´s face. But before Conner could jump on the scientist and wipe the smirk out of his face, he revealed another switch in his other hand and pressed the button.

This one was linked with explosives set on the other side of the room.

**AN: So, here you go. I know I suck at writing stories, so be patient with me. Reviews are extremely appreciated, so is constructive criticism. If you don´t like it, I´m not mad, but please tell me what precisely you don´ like, so I can improve it.**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

**AN: So, I woke up in the middle of night, and I found 2 REWIEVS. YAYYY! Thank do much for both of you guys! It incredibly made my day (or night, whatever). So I decided to finish the second chapter, you couldn´t believe how much I´m glad you like it. But if anybody**

**doesn´t like it, don´t be shy and tell me why, so I can improve it.**

**Disclaimer: fortunately, I don´t own Young Justice.**

_Other side of the room, simultaneously____with the explosion_

Before Robin or Artemis could even realize, that there has been any explosion, Kid Flash had already both clutched tightly in his hands, each of them in one, and was circling around the place, trying to find an exit.

He couldn´t jump through the wall of flames, because his speed would cause the fire to come after him, dragging it even closer to Miss Martian. Also, with the weight of his to teammates resting on his shoulders, he couldn´t run at his top speed, anyway.

He could already feel the heatwave coming for him._ "Can´t let it get past me. We were to close to the epicenter of the explosion, it would burn us to ash. And I must avoid to the kinetic wave too."_

Millions of equations were rushing through his head, but he none was able to get them out of this hell.

He could hear his best friend shouting something at him, but at his accelerated perception, he wasn´t able to catch the words. He slowed down for a while.

"W-i-n-d-o-w! C-a-n-o-n-b-a-l-l u-s t-h-r-o-u-g-h t-h-e w-i-n-d-o-w!" Understanding lighted the speedsters face. He accelerated himself again, now being mere inches from the heatwave.

"_This is going to hurt like hell."_ This thought flashed through his head, before his body crashed to the window, breaking it to thousands of tiny pieces, before they started to fell to the jungle several feet under them.

Both Robin and Artemis could here Wally´s hiss of pain when the heatwave slicked his back.

Then, the three were falling into the night.

_Back with Aqualad, Superboy and Miss Martian_

The heatwave threw them at the wall. As they were flying through the air, Superboy could see the scientists´s skin peeling of, revealing cold metal underneath. Then, with evil smirk still crossing their faces, even the metal melted, and the switch buttons fell to the ground, only to be dissolved in the fire too.

The clone quickly threw himself in front of the Martian and Atlantean. He wasn´t in cle close proximity of the modified fire, so his powers started to kick in again. What would cause third degree burns to normal person felt like pleasant heat on his back.

He hold both of them even tighter, his back facing to the epicenter of the explosion, dividing the fire and heat blast into two, not letting even the smallest flame touch them.

Finally, the furious hell stopped. Miss Martian was lying unconscious in his hands, although she didn´t seem to be injured by the fire. Aqualad was leaning on a wall, panting heavily and sweat pouring down his face. Atlanteans and fire also didn´t get along.

He immediately looked to where his friends we´re just minute ago, but couldn´t see through all the smoke.

Superboy looked back at his two team-mates. "You OK?" he asked in his detached style, but Aqulad could see concern in his eyes.

"I´ll manage. Take Miss M back to the bioship, I will operate it back to Happy Harbor to return the hostages back to their homes."

"But-" Superboy was cut of with sign of Aqualad´s hand. "I know." He had deep, sad look. "I want to look for them too, but innocent people are always our priority, whether we like it or not. They are tough, they´ll handle themselves. They had to get out somehow. I can´t see any bodies from here. We will come back for them, I promise."

Aqualad said this with heavy heart, knowing that he must appear strong in front of others.

After the clone quickly examined the two, assuring they were alright, and then gently carried Miss Martian back to the bio-ship, with Aqualad limping behind him.

He strapped M´gann to the passenger seat, while examining the little room full of scared faces. Everyone was quite, worrying that every little sound could push the clone to anger. They knew what´s going on, and felt kind of guilty that they must save them and not their teammates. But they had families also, worried sick for them.

Aqualad took the pilot seat, his hands resting on the two white controlling spheres. He concentrated, and the ship quietly flew out of the base.

He didn´t flew of immediately, and took a while to overfly the big area under where was the giant window, but still couldn´t see any sign of his friends.

"_Good luck_," he though guilty, as he let the ship to pick up height, accelerated and let home.

Wally´s accelerated mind tried to automatically find any possibility, that would lead them of this mess. For him, it looked like if he was falling in slow motion. He saw his friend´s screaming, but didn´t hear them over the hell above their heads. He could feel his burned back pulsing with pain.

"_If I would be alone, I would probably could make twisters with my hands and stop myself. But with these two..."_ Doubts flashed (no pun intended) through his mind. _"I could still try it. Definitely better than free fall."_

With no hesitation, he shoved Artemis to his right hand next to Dick, and started rotating his left arm quicker than anyone could comprehend.

If he would be alone, It really could have worked. But not when he has using only one hand, and had weight of two people in his second hand.

He was so focused on spinning his arm, that when he finally realized he was just two feet above the solid ground, it was already too late. He had just enough time to stick his shocked friends above him and braced for the impact.

His mind suddenly accelerated itself even more, and to the speedster it could appear that they were hanging in the air, painfully aware of every single tiny detail, like Artemis´s long hair in his mouth, sharp smell of scorched clothes and skin and Robin´s death grip on his wrist.

Then, the reality speed up again, and their frail bodies collided with the ground.

Wally felt incredibly shard, unbearable pain in his left shoulder and forehead. Not that the rest of his body didn´t ache, but nothing was as bad as these two. He could feel and hear cracking of bones.

Before everything went dark, one last thought passed through his mind. _"Fuck, I´m going to be late to dinner."_

**AN: Here you go, please review, it really encourages me to write more. I wish luck to you all in all your exams! And good night, my job is done for now, I´m going to get some more sleep.**


	3. Chapter 3

**AN: here is the new chapter, I´m going through the Big marathon of finals so I don´t have much time to write. Thanks to everyone who reviewed, especially all Guests that corrected Chapters 1 and 2.**

**Special thanks to .14, who immediately volunteered to help and who is my beta now. You helped me a lot. Thanks :)**

**And a message for my schoolmate, who is this world´s _fucking_ greatest detective and found out I´m writing this: Vojtěchu, jestli o tomhle povíš živé duši, budeš si přát aby místo mě vedle tebe stál na tebe nasraný Batman.**

Coincidence is a bitch.

Cadmus hired people for a considerable amount of money to build the base in South Africa. Of course, if they would have spilled even just one word about its existence, they and their families would have disappeared from the surface of the Earth.

One of the workers happened to like birds, the more exotic the better. So, before he moved undercover into that specific part of South Africa, he bought a small pack of luxurious bamboo seeds produced specifically as seeds for birds.

One day, during lunch break, he took his lunch with him. He sat in front of the construction site with his lunch in one hand, bamboo birdseed in another, opened the little sack and threw few seeds on the ground.

Almost immediately, a few birds flew to the ground. They were shining with all imaginable colors, from parrots to sunbirds, all crowded before the worker, who was smiling happily as he was slowly throwing them more seeds.

But none of this was important. The thing that mattered was the only seed that survived, trampled down with furious little bird feet. It thrived inside the soil.

Eventually, the workers left and just the scientists stayed. The little seed was slowly coaxed to life by the rich soil, and it began to grow. After a few days, it was already high, about one foot, and it had a strong, smooth stem.

As I said, coincidence is a bitch. Guess on what Wally fell that fateful night?

* * *

**Below the secret Cadmus base in South Africa**

Artemis felt consciousness creeping somewhere on the edges of her mind. She didn't want to wake up yet, because with the consciousness also came the pain.

But why would I feel pain? What happened to me? These dim thoughts were passing through her clouded mind.

Then images came rushing through her head as she suddenly realized what had happened. Her eyes snapped open and she immediately regretted it, as waves of pain flooded through her body. She painfully pushed herself into sitting position.

The archer quickly examined her wounds, but except for a dislocated right shoulder, which she expertly popped back with a wince, and a few minor cuts and bruises, she seemed fine.

As more memories returned to her mind, her eyes widened in shock as she recalled the two of her teammates that were previously with her.

Oh my god! What happened to Robin and Kid Flash?

She would never admit it, especially not in front of the speedster, but she was worried about him. She hastily looked around, only to find the limp figure of Robin laying just a few meters from her.

She moved to him as quickly as her aching body allowed her, and slowly turned him on his back. The whites on his mask were barely visible. The archer remembered the first thing that her mother taught her when she was starting the hero business - her medical training.

She quickly examined him, just finding a bruised ankle and a flesh wound on his left cheek.

"A - Artemis?" she almost jumped with joy when she heard his voice. She quickly leaned to him.

"I am here Robin," she said, helping him to sit up.

"What happened?" asked the Boy Wonder, and then the whites of his mask widened as he was struck by sudden realization. "Oh."

"Where's Wally?" he finally asked when he was done recollecting his memories.

"I don't know, I just woke up and then I find you lying here and then you woke up and-"

"Artemis, stop panicking," Robin said in calm voice.

"I know, I'm just..."

"Worried about Wally?" Robin finished the sentence for her.

She looked to him with an offended look. In the Team, she was known for turning Wally down whenever he tried to flirt with her. Which was all the time.

Then her expression softened and she nodded a quiet yes.

"Fine, then let's find him," said Robin after a moment of silence, as he tried to stand up. He slowly shifted his weight to his bruised ankle.

"Are you OK?" asked Artemis as she noticed the almost imperceptible grimace of pain on his face.

"I'll live," he simply replied, taking a few cautious steps. "You go look over there, and I'll go in the opposite direction. "

Artemis was glad she could finally do something. She quickly darted away and promptly started searching over the place that Robin showed her.

She was looking for Wally for what seemed to her like a couple of minutes, but was actually only thirty seconds until she heard Robin's voice, "Found him!"

The blonde quickly changed her direction and ran towards where she heard his voice.

She came to a sudden stop before the scene that was in front of her. She saw Robin kneeling next to Kid Flash and pulling his body from what seemed to be a stick. Blood was everywhere.

* * *

**In the bioship, above the Atlantic ocean**

M'gann was sobbing into Conner's shoulder. Due to her mental link with the ship, every time she sobbed, the ship trembled as if experiencing slight turbulence.

All the hostages were sitting quietly at the back of the ship, not daring to speak a single word because of their close proximity to Superboy and his angry glares. He would hear them anyway, even if they were kilometers away.

They were feeling guilty that they were saved. They wouldn't under normal circumstances, but they all saw what happened back at the base. Sure, most of them had families and couldn't wait to see them, but now, they were all feeling sorry for the heroes that saved them, but had to pay the ultimate price.

Suddenly, a little girl rose and slowly walked to the sobbing M'gann. The Martian looked at her with tears flowing down from her eyes.

Without any word, the girl just took her hand, and Miss Martian lifted her and let her sit on her lap. The little girl hugged her closely, and tears started to flood her eyes too.

Soon, nobody's eyes were entirely dry. Even Superboy, although he would never admit it, was blinking rapidly.

This sombre mood lasted the entire rest of the flight.

**AN: here you go, please review how you liked it, it doesn´t have to be long, just to express what you think about it :)**


	4. Chapter 4

**AN: _Hey! Sweet fifteen! Arms are better, got my cast off too And it's snowing! Cool! This is gonna be a good day._**

**Eh, actually, no. Not everyone´s birthday are as good as Wally´s. My arms still hurt like hell from yesterday competition (but I still managed to write this), outside is complete cloudburst and we´re writing like three test today. But I´ll still enjoy the day when I finally become responsible for my crimes.**

**Anyway, enjoy this chapter like you did with the previous one. I got few reviews that were praising my improving grammar. That goes to .14, my fellow beta, I am actually still writing with mistakes.**

**I feel really stupid for not remembering my Geography lessons, that there are no jungles in South Africa. Lets just say, it´s Earth 16, not our Earth, you don´t know how the jungles are positioned in the same places as our jungles.**

**Sorry for my lexical diarrhea, just continue reading :). **

_Previously: She came to a sudden stop before the scene that was in front of her. She saw Robin kneeling next to Kid Flash and pulling his body from what seemed to be a stick. Blood was everywhere._

**South Africa, below the now decimated Cadmus base**

Robin's usual caring spirit was immediately replaced by a cold, unfeeling mood that Batman had taught him to use in cases like this, to prevent feelings from overflowing him. He started to examine Kid Flash for injuries that weren't visible to the naked eye.

Artemis was kneeling next to Robin, her eyes wide, not being able to think about anything else than how haughtily she was always treating him. And now I might never be able to speak to him again.

Tears threatened to spill from her eyes. She didn't want to appear weak in front of Robin, so she bit her tongue and hold them back.

The speedster was incredibly pale, practically white in contrast with his red hair. It almost seemed to be shining in the light of the full moon.

"How is he?" she finally asked after a few minutes, to distract herself from her grim thoughts.

"Bad," came the simple reply. "He has three broken ribs and a fractured right thigh bone. Bruises all over his body and that pierced shoulder. He lost a lot of blood, and can't heal himself right now because he doesn't have the necessary amount of energy."

Without hesitation, Robin pulled a bandage from his utility belt and gently started to wrap it around Kid Flash's torso. He stopped for a while to lightly lift Kid Flash's arms to bandage the other side of his wound when his eyes saw something beneath the other boy's hair.

He carefully moved his fingers along the gash that he had noticed. A gloomy expression settled itself on his already darkened face as he took his hand away and saw that his fingers were covered in blood.

He suddenly drew a little flashlight, forced open one of the redhead's eyelids and shined the light on it. He did the same with the other eye. Artemis watched him with concern.

"Shit." Artemis tensed as shivers were sent down her spine. Robin never swore. This had to be really bad.

"Shit's not good," she tried to reply in her normal strong voice, but a tiny childish sounding voice came out of her. If they weren't in this situation, she would have mentally slapped herself.

"No, it isn't. He has a severe concussion. Even if we survive this, there is a chance he might never wake up..."

Artemis could hear the worry in Robins voice overpowering his unfeeling tone. After all, Wally was his best friend. She felt her heart sinking to somewhere in her stomach, with a heavy feeling replacing it.

"What do we d-"

"Shh!" Robin pushed her face to the ground and lied down next to her. She once again felt her pain flare up from her shoulder and felt it slip back out, but didn't let a hiss of pain escape her lips.

She tried to breathe as silently as possible, but it was almost unfeasible with Wally lying just a few centimeters beside her. She wasn't hearing anything and wanted to get up, but Robin pressed her down again.

Artemis focused on her hearing and blocked out the noises of the jungle. After a while, she heard a soft, almost imperceptible beeping.

The archer slightly lifted her head, and with her peripheral vision scanned the place from where she heard the sound. She saw a tiny red light floating in mid-air. Then it split into two. She turned her head back to Robin.

"What are those?" she asked voicelessly, depending on Robin's knowledge of reading lips.

"Cadmus drones," he replied silently. "I think they are searching for us."

The blonde swallowed a sarcastic retort. "What now?"

"We obviously cannot stay here. We have to go further into the jungle. If they found no bodies, they will know we hid somewhere and will search for us, therefore we must get as far as possible from here. I'll carry Wally. When I tell you, stand up and go to the trees on our left"

"Fine."

They waited a few minutes for the drones to pass. Instead, they were coming closer and closer to the three heroes. Their work was silent and systematic. Finally, they turned into a different direction and started to search another area.

Robin tapped her on her shoulder - the silent command.

The archer silently rose with Robin at her side. She felt another pulse of pain going through her shoulder, but she ignored it. There weren't any time for it now. There were other problems to be concerned about now.

Robin slowly picked up Kid Flash and gently placed him on his back. Wally's right leg was hanging at a weird angle. Robin slightly stumbled under his weight, but otherwise didn't show any signs of discomfort.

Before the drones could turn towards them again, they were already hidden behind the trees.

Robin gently placed Kid Flash on the ground, making sure he doesn't put him on one of his many fractures and possibly worsen his injuries, before turning to Artemis.

"Your shoulder," he said, pointing at it. "I can put it back?"

"Do it," the archer said simply, clamping her teeth together and looking to the other side.

Robin softly clutched her hand. "Okay, when I count to three, I will put it back into the hollow. Are you ready?"

The blonde silently nodded, gritting her teeth harder to stop from telling him to just get on with it.

"Fine, I'm doing it on three. One-"

Without finishing the countdown, Robin did a smooth circular movement and a muffled crack could be heard as her shoulder slipped back into its normal position. Artemis was so taken by surprise she didn't even realized what he did until it was over.

"You little..," Artemis trailed off, before grasping that she really didn't have anything to complain about. "Thank you," she finally said and smiled to him. It was small, shaky and unsure but still, it was a smile.

"You're welcome." Robin returned the smile, before turning to Kid Flash again. His smile quickly faded.

The redhead was lying there, motionless, too motionless for a speedster. Robin worriedly stared at him for a few moments, before looking back to the archer. He spoke in a quiet, grave voice.

"Artemis, I'm afraid that if some miracle doesn't happen soon, Wally is not going to make it."

**AN: And intensity intensifies...**

**For those who stumbled over this fanfic and read it to the end, I really thank you for all your reviews. I haven´t got any negative review so far, I guess that really means something :). Please continue doing it!**


	5. Chapter 5

**AN: So, here you go. I just realized I´m getting a bit addicted to this all, checking my e-mail like every half an hour for new reviews/PMs/follows/favorites (in this order).**

**Thanks to .14 again. What would I do without you? I would probably get all those reviews writing about my mistakes. At least they were long...**

**By the way, does someone know Aedien? She wrote Heroes Need Heroes and it was the best fanfic I´ve ever read, but it´s been almost an year since she last updated and she didn´t finish it and I can´t help but wonder what will happen next...**

**At Happy Harbor, after the Bioship arrived**

Miss Martian carefully handed the little girl, who was between the hostages in the Cadmus secret base, to her crying mother. The girl sat in her lap throughout the rest of the flight, quietly sobbing into M'gann's shoulder, until she cried herself to sleep.

Her mother was tenderly hugging her to her chest, thanking M'gann with a look of profound relief, before turning her brown, deer-like eyes back to her slowly awakening daughter.

"Shh, I'm here, Hannah," the mother was whispering to her. As she slowly walked away to her husband, Hannah stared at the Martian from over her mother's shoulder, until they were separated by a crowd of people.

With a barely audible sigh, Miss Martian turned to Conner, who was watching the crowd with his indifferent sky blue eyes, looking for any sign of trouble. She stopped a few centimeters before him, took his hand and he finally moved his eyes towards her.

They understood each other so deeply, that they didn't need to communicate with each other to know what the other one was thinking about, not verbally nor telepathically. The clone squeezed her hand and they slowly, hand in hand walked to Aqualad, who was helping the last person, an elderly lady, from the Bioship.

"What now?" asked Miss Martian, when all of the hostages were finally on their way to be returned to their homes and families.

"I have informed the League. They are almost at our location," their leader replied instantly, noticing the angry look that passed over Conner's face.

"Why can't we get them out of there now? We don't even know if they are still alive! Every second could be crucial and we're wasting it by waiting for the League?!" Conner didn't even realize that he was shouting until he saw the scared look on M'gann's face. He tried his best to calm his voice, but he was still speaking very loudly.

"You know as well as I that there were no bodies in the room where the explosion happened. They must have escaped somehow, and the only possible way was through that window, which was pretty high. They aren't invulnerable and if they were okay, they would have contacted us by now. Because they haven't, we must presume that they are not okay and WE MUST GET TO THEM AS QUICKLY AS POSSIBLE!" He gave up his effort of calming down somewhere after the first sentence, his voice speeding up and rising again.

"I still have to explain everything to Batman. Robin is his protégé, he has every right to know what happened-" Aqualad was interrupted by a loud bang, as Superboy punched a streetlamp, which was the unlucky object to serve as a channel for his anger. It was easily bent to the ground as if it was a blade of grass.

"Fine. But don't try to hold me back. Once I lay my hands on the one responsible for this..," Once again, he was mentally cursing Lex Luthor for giving his DNA to him, and as a result, stripping him of his flight powers.

Aqualad looked at him, understanding in his eyes. "If only it was so simple," he replied and started walking towards the Bioship, with M'gann floating next to him over the streetlamp hugging the road, and Superboy angrily marching behind them.

**A few minutes later, in Mount Justice**

_Recognised Flash 04_

Even before the computer finished saying his name, Flash was standing next to Aqualad, and started talking even before his after-images faded.

"What the hell happened there? Where is Kid? Whereistherestofyourteam. Pleasetellmetheyreallrighttheyhavetobealrightor-" Flash was getting more nervous with every picosecond that passed and was now talking so fast and in such a high-pitched voice, that Aqualad couldn't understand a single word.

"Calm down Flash, or you'll vibrate a hole in the ground," came the calm, authoritative voice of Batman as he materialized from the Zeta tube. Then he walked to Aqualad and asked him in his strong voice, emphasizing every word. "Now, tell me, what happened."

Aqualad started to explain how everything ended so badly, Superboy's urgent looks encouraging him to talk faster in order to go save their friends as soon as possible.

When Aqualad got to the part where the explosion separated the team, Batman's jaw tensed and Flash clenched his fists so tightly that his knucklebones could be seen through his skin. They quickly exchanged glances of concern.

Once Aqualad finished, a short silence reigned in the Mountain, whilst Batman quickly analyzed the situation. He started speaking, weighing every word that came out of his mouth.

"The Justice League is in the middle of a mission in space, battling Atrocitus and his Red Lantern Corps. I came here to Earth just to make an antidote against the blood they are spilling. If I don't go back with the antidote, in less than six hours, the League might not be able to handle the threat, the Red Lanterns will take over the planet Okaara, and all of its sixteen billion inhabitants will die. That is something I cannot allow. Once we are done there, I can send you a squad to help you find them. But for now, please excuse me."

Flash was the first one to react. "But Bats, you can't possibly mean that. Don't you-"

Batman pulled Flash towards him by his uniform, threateningly leaning to him and saying to him in a deadly calm voice: "I am completely aware of what I just said. Civilians are the first priority; you of all people should know this after being a hero for so many years. You can´t give up sixteen billion lives to save three. Now let's not waste any more time. We need to make the antidote. Did I make myself perfectly clear?" The speedster looked anywhere else than at Batman's eyes with its infamous glare. Of course, he was right. Batman was always right.

The two League members walked over to the Zeta Tubes, with Flash sending one last apologizing look to the three young heroes, before they were teleported to the Batcave.

Aqualad, Superboy and Miss Martian were staring at the Zeta, hoping that Batman would come back and tell them he was actually joking. But he didn't. Batman never joked.

M'gann's eyes started to fill with tears as she turned to the Atlantean. She spoke with a soft voice, "Batman didn't want to make that decision. I didn't try to read his thoughts, I swear, but all the feelings were just radiating from him. He loves Robin and he feels like he is betraying him now. I don't understand how he can feel like that and act so heartless at the same time."

Aqualad looked at her with understanding. "I know I must seem cruel to say this, but Batman is right. Sometimes you have to abandon your personal feelings for the greater good. I just know that I never want to be placed in the situation where such a decision must be made..." His voice suddenly fills with renewed determination. "Robin, Kid Flash and Artemis have no one but us and their fate is resting on our shoulders. We must not waste any more time. Miss M, prepare the Bioship. We are leaving immediately."

**AN: So, that´s it. I´m sorry I´m making Bats look like such an asshole, but I tried to explain the cold look he has on world, although he loves Dick like his own son.**

**I would like to say that I´m keeping you in suspect because I´m evil, but that´s just an excuse for being stuck on the main part of story. I´m Incredible as The Hulk. Even before I started to write this, I wrote the whole plot down to avoid this particular thing. I still can´t believe it, but the next next chapter will probably be about Dick, Wally and Arty.**

**Review if you like, even short ones can make my entire day, longer ones makes me feel happy for couple or more day, and that´s something. Thanks to everyone who reviewed so far :). Keep it up!**


	6. Chapter 6

**AN: So here you go, I hope you´ll like it. This one was hard one for me to write, because for some reason unknown to me, I got stuck somehow. Probably because I didn´t have my paper with information when I was writing this in our car.**

**Please note that I´ll probably won´t update in like three weeks, because on Friday I´m going to school summer camp to Croatia and I can´t take my notebook with me.**

**Thanks to .14 for correcting this again and giving me all this precious info. Seriously, I couldn´t find any better Beta than you (technically, you found me, but still..)**

_Previously: The redhead was lying there, motionless, too motionless for a speedster. Robin worriedly stared at him for a few moments, before looking back to the archer._

_He spoke in a quiet, grave voice. "Artemis, I'm afraid that if some miracle doesn't happen soon, Wally is not going to make it."_

Robin's words hit Artemis like a slap with a dead fish. She knew Wally wasn't in his best condition, but this sounded so unreal... She didn't want to believe it. And yet, it was happening.

We are heroes, she thought. We go down in epic battles, protecting innocent civilians or our loved ones, not bleeding out, forgotten somewhere in the middle of nowhere.

She laid another uneasy look on the unconscious speedster lying in front of her, painfully aware of every single shaky and barely noticeable breath. Artemis was no princess, in her hero job, the possibility of death was on her daily schedule, but this was different.

Robin managed to put his bat poker face on, once again analyzingthe current situation. He weighed every possible course of action, but none of them seemed to perfectly fit. His frown deepened. He turned to Artemis, who was still watching Wally with a look focused on something deep within. Even with the almost neutral look, Robin didn't have to be world's second greatest detective to know what she was thinking about right now.

Artemis was lost in thought. Now that they weren't in any immediate danger and the adrenaline from the run and from the pain constantly shooting out of her dislocated shoulder, wearing off, she could barely keep her eyes open. She kept herself awake by sheer force of will, knowing that Wally's life depended on her.

The archer was recalling every single moment she spent with Wally, mentally smiling at some, wanting to face palm at others. Sure, he was an annoying, flirty little brat, but he had a heart as big as his stomach.

She thought about when they had first met, with him dressed in swimming shorts, beach umbrella in one hand, stretched out in front of her after tripping over his own feet. Sunglasses half-fallen from his face, while his inflatable ball was happily bouncing away in the awkward silence, he had looked up into the face of a clearly not amused Batman.

Normally, she would smirk at the memory, but now the only thing she could feel was her stomach twisting into tight knot. She was interrupted from her thoughts by Robin's voice.

"So, we are stuck in the middle of a jungle in South Africa with one gravely injured teammate, while Cadmus drones are searching for us."

"Geez, thanks, I hadn't noticed," said Artemis sardonically, before she was stopped by junior the version of the batglare. Even though it came from a thirteen year old, it was still pretty intimidating.

"That means we must find some food and shelter immediately," Robin continued. "So we can help Kid Flash. We have no time to lose."

"You want to keep carrying him around on your back or what?"

"Artemis, please stop being sarcastic, you're really not helping me. By hiding here we gained just a few extra minutes before the drones find us. When they don't found any bodies, they will assume that we managed to escape and they will expand their search radius to try and find us. We need to keep moving and try to find a place where they can't find us and to contact the rest of the Team to pick us-" he suddenly stopped and turned his head to the direction they came from.

Artemis knew when it's better not to ask and just trust Robin, so she did the same. She concentrated on blocking out the noises of the jungle, but she couldn't hear anything else than her harsh breathing.

After a few seconds, Robin hurriedly turned back to her and started speaking in a calm but quick voice.

"I can hear the drones coming towards us. Quick, we mustn't lose any more time. Help me with Kid." Robin bends down to Wally, carefully grabbing his shoulders and slightly raised him. Wally's head was hanging limply. Artemis caught his waist and helped to put Kid Flash on Robin's back. She arranged him so that he could carry Wally easier. Finally Robin made sure Wally's leg wasn't twisted at some weird angle before he turned to Artemis and nodded. "Let's go."

They immediately started running at a quick but persistent pace. By now, the archer could already hear the almost unrecognizable vibrations that the drones emitted to propel themselves through the humid, stifling air.

She looked at Robin loping next to her with Wally bouncing on his back. The ninja was stubbornly looking to the ground in front of him, focusing only on his breathing, lightly leaping over fallen little branches and avoiding larger groups of dry, rustling leaves.

The blonde was so occupied with watching how Robin was doing that she completely failed to notice a protrusion in the terrain before her. Her right ankle twisted the moment she stepped on the hidden tree stump, rotting underneath the leaves. She hissed in surprise at the sharp, but not unbearable pain that erupted in her ankle.

She silently swore under her breath, cursing that goddamned tree. Luckily, it was only a light sprain and not a torn ligament or fracture. Probably the only luck that smiled on them during their failed mission so far. To the most of the people, it wouldn't seem like luck, but she knew that things could get far worse. The pain would subside in few minutes, and in the meantime she still could run, although her right leg was slightly buckling under her, as she was half running, half limping, next to Robin.

This sudden sound didn't go unnoticed by the drones. Like the machines they were, all of the drones turned towards the sound, beeping like crazy. In unison, they all started flying towards where they're sensors had picked up the slight vibrations.

Before Artemis and Robin broke into a furious sprint, they spared half a second to look at each other. Artemis's eyes filled with guilt and fear and the whites on Robin's mask going wide with fear not for him, but for his teammates.

**AN: Please review to say what you think so far, I´m an endless optimist, so each review incredibly cheers me up! The last chapter got 7 reviews, it´s a new record for you to break :)!**


	7. Chapter 7

**AN: Hi guys, I´m finally back and I finished my seventh chapter as promised.**

**This one isn´t a lot of action but I promise the next one will make up for it. As Lynphea pointed out (thanks for the reviews by the way. Actually, thanks for everyone´s reviews. I love you all. I still can´t believe somebody reviewed my story two weeks after it was aired), I´m involving really EVERYONE in my story, so some chapters may seem to be boring.**

**I first wanted to make this double sized chapter, like two chapters mixed together, but I probably wouldn´t finish it before I go to the tent camp with technology banned. I think that shorter but more frequent chapters are better than longer, but published once in two months. But if you disagree, just tell me, I´ll try my best to make this story good for you.**

**I used some information and plot from The New 52: Green Lantern: New Guardians.**

**Finally, here you go. Enjoy!**

**In the Batcave**

Batman was sitting in the Batcave, with the batglare fixed into the eyepieces of a microscope. A bright red, still bubbling substance was placed on the microscope slate. He was trying to figure out from which chemical components the Red Lantern's blood was made of. A calm and concentrated expression had settled itself on his face, but everything beneath his façade of indifference was clamouring for him to get up and fly from the Batcave. He did not want to care about the destiny of Okaara and if it weren't for years of training, he wouldn't have hesitated for a second before burning down the entire South African jungle in the hopes of finding a boy, who was his son in every single way but by blood.

He knew it wasn't possible. Responsibility came with the job - the responsibility to sacrifice the things and the people closest to you for the sake of the greater good. This was Batman's number one rule. Bruce Wayne could go and save Dick, but Bruce Wayne wasn't at home right now. Just Batman. And Batman always stuck to his rules.

He suppressed the fatigue that was pressing against his tired eyes and concentrated on the problem at hand. He had been going three days in a row without sleep. And yet, if he tried to, he wouldn't have been able to sleep, because thoughts about Dick constantly plagued his mind.

He knew that if he wanted to protect Gotham he should be in his best shape but on the other hand, he couldn't protect Gotham if he treated himself to the regular rest his body so desperately craved. It was the curse of being Gotham's protector.

Tiredness was dulling his senses and slowing down his reflexes. He used his training from the League of Shadows, suppressed the symptoms, and focused all of his attention on the problem. He made a mental note that once the current crisis was over, he would treat himself to a long night's sleep - world disaster or not.

The Dark Knight was trying to focus on the silence in the Batcave, the one he always loved to operate him in and the one that always calmed him, but he couldn't. A certain speedster sitting in the chair next to him was tapping with his foot so quickly that it sounded like a continuous hum. Barry had to do everything else at a normal speed, because the vibrations would cause the test tube to break and ruin the little amount of samples they had.

Batman was trying to ignore him, but the more he tried to disregard that sound, the more the noise was irritating him. It was seriously affecting his ability to work.

Just before the caped crusader finally snapped at Flash, he suddenly stopped mid-movement and stared into nothingness for a few seconds. The gears, turning at top speed, inside of his brilliant, analytical mind was almost visible.

He quickly turned back to his microscope without saying a single word to Flash. The speedster was so focused on his own microscope that he didn't even notice Batman's slight movement. If possible, it seemed as if his foot was vibrating even faster now.

After a few seconds, a victorious grin appeared on Batman's face. Not a genuine smile, just a slightly triumphant grin. He was Batman after all and had to keep his mask of seriousness at all times.

He pressed a few buttons on the keyboard. For the uninitiated person, all the keys seemed the same, but Batman had a unique system built in that only he and few others understood. A diagram of some molecule appeared on a big holographic screen.

Batman gently bumped Flash, who was so absorbed in his work that he hadn't even noticed that Batman had already reached a conclusion. Flash was so tense that the tiny movement cause him to lose concentration and accelerate his actions. His vibrating fingers shattered the test tube he was holding in his hand and the red liquid exploded towards his face. Luckily, with his reflexes increased to their highest capacity, he was able to dodge it with ease.

An expression of infinite guilt immediately flashed across his face. "That was my last sample." Flash looked completely devastated.

"Barry, look at me," Gotham's protector ordered and the white lenses on Flash's cowl finally met those of Batman. "I solved it."

Flash visibly relaxed and composed himself. He finally saw the hologram hovering in mid-air. "What do you have?"

The Caped Crusader magnified a certain part of the molecule and started to explain in a calm and indifferent voice, the complete opposite to how he was feeling inside.

"This atom here is selenium. It's a semiconductor. It activates when light shines on it." Flash impatiently nodded and gestured for Batman to continue. He was a forensic scientist; obviously, he knew how selenium worked. Batman acknowledged the fact and magnified another part of the molecular structure.

"This element is unknown to Earth, but according to my calculations, this element causes reactions between particular colours of the Lantern spectrum. From what Jordan explained to me, this element is the cause to why his ring is ineffective against the colour yellow and how a Blue Lantern's light boosts up a Green Lantern's ring and so forth. All Lanterns, except Red, have this element located in their rings, but the Red Lantern rings are connected with their blood, so naturally the element appears there. Selenium reacts only with white light, but in combination with this alien element, selenium reacts only with White Lantern light. And there is only one Lantern in the entire universe who has the potential to become a White Lantern, and that is-"

"Kyle Rayner," Flash finished for him, comprehension dawning onto him with a smile.

Batman nodded and continued. "Luckily for us, he has now completed his training on the planet Zamaron with the Star Sapphires. Reaction between the White Lantern light, selenium and that alien element will create an electric current, electrocute the Red Lanterns and temporarily put them out of the fight," Before Batman had even finished his sentence, he was already on his way to the Batplane.

"We will fly back to Okaara and inform Jordan or Stewart, whichever one of them can get to Zamaron fastest."

"Wait, Bats, do you need me for this?" Flash asked with concern clearly recognizable in his voice.

Batman thought for a while before he replied, "Yes, there are still a lot of victims on Okaara and your super speed will be useful if we want to help them as fast as possible." He placed his gloved hand on Flash's shoulder and continued, "I know it's difficult..."

Batman wanted to continue, but building up morale or empathic conversations were not his strongest points, so he rather returned to his brooding personality and started flipping the controls of the Batplane, doing the last check-ups.

The Scarlet Speedster mentally sighed. He didn't want to irritate Batman, because he has known him for quite some time and was able to tell when the Dark Knight was hiding his emotions. If the Team found the others, they will definitely send a message right away. Flash knew that innocent civilians always came first, but this thought didn't help him at all. He still felt like he was abandoning Wally when the kid needs him most.

With both heroes lost in their grim thoughts, the Batplane silently rose from the ground. They flew through the open roof and headed to a little white dot in the sky that seemed peaceful at the first glance, but was currently housing one of the most brutal intergalactic conflicts of all time.

**AN: Uh, wow, this is actually the first time I used my chemistry and more advanced physics lessons somewhere else than school... You see guys, that´s why you should pay attention to your teacher, you never know when you can use a piece of knowledge like than when writing a fanfiction...**

**Thanks so much for all your reviews, I got six for the last chapter, yayyyy! Way to go guys! :)**


	8. Chapter 8

**AN: Hey guys, I tried my best and finished chapter 8 before I go to two weeks tent camp with banned technology. **

**I know the last chapter sucked (You know how I know? I got ZERO freakin´ reviews, although it got record amount of views). Okay, so I tried my best. This is double long chapter, so I expect double amount of reviews :).**

**I was actually crying when I was writing this little baby. ME. I was always thinking about myself that I´m quite tough, but this little one broke my heart, along with the sad music I always listen to while writing this. I was looking forward to write this from the beginning of this fic, so it was quite easy to write. Everyone enjoy!**

The adrenaline in Artemis's veins was temporarily suppressing the sharp, pulsating pain in her sprained ankle. Not that the pain wasn't there, just her brain didn't allow her to care about it right now. Every time she carelessly shifted her weight onto her injured ankle, her leg buckled a bit, but because of her momentum it was quickly replaced by her other running leg. Her hunter instincts were solely focused on the terrain passing under her boots to avoid another mishap.

Branches and bushes reached out from the gloom and slashed at every part of her body that wasn't covered by her costume. Thin red lines were left on her cheeks, arms and hands, but she couldn't care less. She shot a quick sidelong glance at Robin.

She was amazed at the grace of his movements even when carrying a passenger on his back. She always admired his skills and abilities, but now she came to realise that she has never truly seen him in action. His ninja training had been kicked up a notch or four, and he was jumping over branches and tricky places with the ease and elegance of a cat. The white lenses on his mask were narrowed to slits in focus. He wasn't panting, but his breathing was audible as he took deep breaths to deliver more oxygen to his muscles in order to endure longer run.

Still unconscious, Kid Flash was bouncing on his back in sync with Robin's leaps. If they weren't in currently running for their lives, Artemis would have laughed at how ridiculous it looked.

Unlike the heroes, the drones didn't have such difficulties. No unconscious teenagers were hanging from their backs. No sprained ankles, no bruises, no burns or cuts covered their bodies. And best of all, they could fly. Moving through the jungle was infinitely easier for the metallic machines hounding them.

Coincidently (and unfortunately), the two heroes that were stuck in this situation were the ones with no superpowers. Both heroes were only human. And no matter how long they've trained or how determined they might be to save their friend, no human, even if they were as high above the average population as Artemis and Robin were, could endure a top speed sprint for more than a few minutes. After a while, the oxygen started burning your lungs, your muscles scream from oxygen deprivation and you are forced to slow down.

The archer's breath started to catch as her aching lungs desperately tried to draw more oxygen into her body. Her attempts to breathe were becoming more and more laborious and her legs were involuntarily slowing due to growing amount of lactic acid building up in her muscle cells. She had no time to spare a look in Robin's direction, but she could hear light wheezing starting to replace his previously smooth breathing pace. He was better trained than she was for these types of situations, what with being an acrobat and patrolling the streets of Gotham, but the extra weight on his back was clearly taking its toll.

Artemis couldn't see Robin's eyes frantically scanning the surroundings as he searched for any place, anything, that could provide them with shelter against the Cadmus drones in pursuit. Branches of trees couldn't provide any cover. Hiding behind or underneath a tree trunk was so obvious that even a child would be able to find them there.

As he leapt over a particularly large piece of rotting wood, the speedster on his back bounced a little more than before and started to slowly slide from the younger teenager's back. Robin made an attempt to get a better hold of him, but he missed the lanky redhead's arm and Kid Flash fell to the ground with a soft thud, which seemed to reverberate through the silent jungle.

"Shit!" Robin cursed and stopped to retrieve his best friend from the ground. He shot a quick glance behind him to try to see how far the drones were. He couldn't see them, but the continuous vibrations from their engines filled the air. Suddenly a silver flash caught his attention.

The ninja narrowed his eyes and tried to determine what he had seen. A gentle night breeze sighed and fidgeted through the dark green jungle leaves, exposing a watery surface reflecting the silver rays of the moon hanging in the sky above.

Without a second thought, Robin made his decision. "There!" he shouted to Artemis and they half carried, half-dragged Kid Flash to the small creek. They passed behind a leafy barrier of Sideroxylon inerme just in time as the drones approached the little glade through which Robin and Artemis had been running mere seconds ago. They were uncertain if they made it to the lake unseen, but they could only hope that their luck hadn't run out entirely.

Robin quickly shoved Artemis into the clear water. She barely had time gulp down a mouthful of air. He gently grabbed Kid Flash by the waist and pulled him along with himself into the lake. The water wasn't freezing, but it wasn't warm either since they were nearer to the West Coast than the South. Although Robin's costume had isolating layer, goose bumps appeared on his arms. He could already see the dim red lights of the drones' cameras through the veil of leaves as they frantically searched for the heroes' trail that had suddenly disappeared.

The ebony haired teen tried to regulate his still quick and superficial breathing, before taking one final breath and diving into the murky water, pulling Kid Flash with him. The surface rippled slightly as it closed over their heads.

After almost drowning three missions in a row, Robin decided to carry two artificial gills in his utility belt instead of one. To hell with trying to be prepared, he still didn't have enough for them all. From now on, he's going to carry artificial gills for everyone in the Team (excluding Aqualad), plus three ones extra.

He shoved one into the speedster's mouth. There was no debate about that. In his current condition, Kid Flash needed it even more than usual. Robin pressed his friend's nostrils close so he wouldn't breathe the water in through his nose and pressed the other artificial gills to Artemis's mouth before she could argue. She did try, but at least only in hand gestures, because she couldn't talk, obviously.

Once the gills were pressed to a person's mouth, it couldn't be taken out unless the person emerged from the water. This meant that the gills couldn't be shared, but on the other hand, a villain couldn't rip them out during an underwater fight and leave you to drown. In this situation, however, there was no upside for Robin.

He could hold his breath for quite a long period of time. How could he not after all of the strenuous training Batman forced him to endure? His lungs still weren't developed to an adult's capacity, but still, after all the hours spent training holding his breath in the icy pool hidden beneath the Manor, he could hold his breath for an average of 5 minutes. That wasn't too bad for a thirteen-year-old teenager. It actually was a pretty good score; it was longer than the average adult's was. But now, with Lady Luck having turned away from them, Robin's body was still paying off the previous oxygen debt. Robin did a few quick calculations and worked out that in this condition, he could last about two minutes.

He frowned. With their luck, the drones would find them there precisely when his instincts won't let him hold his breath anymore and his own brain betrayed him by forcing him above the water's surface and into revealing their hideout.

Robin opened one of his utility belt's pockets and pulled out a tiny, collapsible periscope. He carefully expanded it and inconspicuously pushed one end of it through the surface and controlled it to aim into the direction they came from. He pressed the other end to his right eye. What he saw didn't look too good.

Cadmus drones were already searching around the leaves and slowly approaching the lake. If they came near enough, the drones would surely spot them. Even with the water acting as a reflective mirror, it wouldn't hide them entirely. He ignored Artemis tapping on his shoulder, wanting to look through the periscope too, but instead he quickly disassembled the periscope and gestured for the archer to dive lower.

An unpleasant pressure started to settle itself in his lungs and neck, but he pushed it to the back of his mind. He could make it at least another minute. Artemis was watching him with concern. Robin stared up at the sky through the water. It was a full moon that night. Normally, it would be romantic and stuff, but that night the eerie light casted a foreboding light over their hiding place.

Robin's vision started to blur as the need for air grew, but he knew he couldn't emerge because the drones would find them.

The pressure on his lungs was still mounting and it was starting to feel like his head was going to explode. Every nerve, every cell, in his body yelled at him to swim up as long while he still could; before it's too late. His unyielding will refused to budge and barked at his nerves to shut up with an even louder voice.

'Better just me than all of us,' was the last thought that flashed through his mind, before it simply started making dumb observation due to the lack of oxygen. Robin was looking at a shoal of fish swimming around them. He smiled serenely, like a little kid, as a last few, precious bubbles escaped from his lips.

Artemis shook him, pulled at him and tried to swim to the surface. Her face was so angry that Robin could only imagine what she would have been yelling at him if it weren't for the artificial gills stuffed into her mouth. 'You idiot! If you drown here, Wally will die! If you die, you can't help any of us!' With the last bit of his strength, he halted her progress to the surface, shook his head and pointed upwards.

She saw black shadows dance across the image of the big, round moon. It took her a second to realise that a school of fish were swimming above them, creating the shadow and effectively distorting the drones' view of them.

Robin drifted on the very brink of consciousness, but it didn't matter. Nothing mattered anymore. He heard that drowning was one of the most awful deaths, but it wasn't… this wasn't... it was… beautiful. He was floating, weightless. His hair waved around his face and tickled his neck. He felt no pain and he had never felt so happy in his entire life.

Now, instead of darkening, everything was bathed in a beautiful, otherworldly light. Every detail was sharp and colourful. Every stone, every scale on every fish, was extremely vivid. All he wanted to do was embrace the light and merge with it.

He raised his arm to touch the light. But his arm wouldn't go into the light; instead, it was being pulled up, along with his entire body. As he was being moved away from the light, darkness was consuming him. He wanted to fight, to break free and touch the light. The light felt familiar somehow.

It felt… like home.

A form started taking shape inside of the light. He knew that form…

Suddenly everything became cleared. With wide eyes, he stared into familiar blue orbs. "Mom? Mom!" he shouted with the last oxygen he had left in his lungs.

Loving eyes, filled with tears, looked at him. A soft, ethereal voice whispered, "I love you."

Robin made one last attempt to break free of his captor, but his body was paralyzed. Filled with infinite sorrow, he let the darkness envelope him.

The next thing Robin remembered was lying on the wet ground, getting a painful smack on his back and violently coughing out masses of water and throwing up anything that was left in his stomach.

He gasped in wonderful, life-giving air. The feeling was incredible - indescribable. Only those who survived drowning knew how it felt. He gluttonously took a few more breaths before throwing up once again.

Then he noticed Artemis kneeling next to him, prepared to give him another one of her "tender" smacks. He stopped her by a small wave of his hand. He rolled onto his back and for a few exquisite moments, simply enjoyed the feeling of being alive.

**AN: Here it is, I don´t know how you liked it, but I feel pretty confident about it. Please, spare few seconds on me (because I´m using my almost entire free time to write this), to write at least a short review, or if you really like it, spare a few minutes and write a long, nice review how I always do it.**

**Please?**


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